


Pain and Fame

by batman_the_lad



Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: Allison's alive HURRAH, Deaton is still Deaton, Derek's even more of a dick but is working on it, Erica and Boyd are alive HURRAH, F/M, Isaac and Stiles have a lot of banter, M/M, Malia still wants to be a coyote but pizza is life, Peter is way less of a douche, Scott's all domestic, Stiles is an amazing actor??
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-01-26
Updated: 2018-02-10
Packaged: 2018-09-19 23:32:43
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 15,094
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9465521
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/batman_the_lad/pseuds/batman_the_lad
Summary: After his rise to stardom being so quick and unforeseen Stiles Stilinski is a household name, adored by many. Memories imbedded deep down rise to the surface after finishing a horror film about possession which ends up with him having night terrors and panic attacks about the Nogitsune again. He decided it would be best to take a break from acting until he feels everything is under control again, so he returns to Beacon Hills hoping being surrounded by the ones who adore him most will help his situation. After learning that supernatural occurrences are still happening Stiles rethinks as to whether going home was the best idea.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This is my first fic so if it's shit I'm sorry lol. Any feedback is appreciated. Hopefully will be doing a chapter a month, maybe less because college and work leaves me with hardly any free time. Enjoy lads.

Stiles wakes up in a panic. His whole body shaking, sweat dripping from his forehead and his mouth painfully dry. His heart is beating rapidly and he's gasping for breath. He looks at his phone, only to see that it was 2.04am and sighs. He gets up from his bed and makes it before entering the front room to see his assistant, Amelia, sitting at the kitchen table on her laptop. 

"What are you still doing here? It's two in the morning, go home." Stiles said, walking over to the cupboard, pulling out a box of pop tarts.

"As you can see I'm still doing work. I figured I'd be working late so I decided it would be better for me to just stay here instead." She replied, her eyes still fixed on her laptop.

Stiles nodded, put two pop tarts in the toaster and put the box back in the cupboard. He grabbed a glass from the sink and filled it with water, downing the whole glass within seconds. The ding of the toaster startled him and he dropped his glass, smashing everywhere as it impacted the floor.

"Fuck!" Stiles shouted. He grabbed the dustpan and brush from under the sink and started sweeping up the shards, carefully walking around making sure not to cut himself.

"You were screaming you know. Just before you woke. You seemed terrified." Amelia looked away from her computer and up towards Stiles, her eyes filled with sympathy.

"You don't need to fully concern yourself. It's not the first time it's happened. When I was in school, back at home, it started happening. But I dealt with it then and I can deal with it now." He swept the rest of the glass up and put it in the bin, grabbed a plate and started eating his pop tarts.

"It's that film. That damn film! I told you not to do it Stiles, I told you it was too much. But you didn't listen and now look at you. You wake up in the middle of the night screaming, gasping for breathe and unable to go back to sleep. Even familiar noises make you jump Stiles. I'm worried. You need help."

"That's why you've stayed a lot recently isn't it? To check up on me, make sure I'm sleeping well and if I'm not sleeping making sure I'm at least alive and partly sane. Listen Amelia, there were things that happened when I lived at home. Things that you could never imagine and this film i-it brought up some of the those things, things that I wish I had forgotten. It's taken some thought but I've decided that I need to go back home and be around the people that helped me through it before. I've not been myself recently and I know that. I need to sort this out as soon as possible so I'm leaving tomorrow - uh today. Soon, actually."

Amelia had a small tear in her eye, wiping it away as she got up and walked over to Stiles, embracing him tightly. "I have seen you through some pretty shit times, trying to cope with the fame and the publicity but this - it's the worse I've ever seen you and it scares me. You're such a happy, sarcastic idiot who would be taking the piss out the fact I'm nearly crying which means you're not yourself. You hide your pain really well Stiles but sometimes you need people to see that you're struggling and the way you talk about your friends back home tells me that going back is the best thing for you."

They stood there for a moment, hugging tightly until Amelia pulled away. "Anyway, I've got work to do, making up some idiotic story about which exotic destination you're heading off too. I took the liberty of already packing your things, including most of your casual clothes, toiletries and - oh, there's a rucksack full of sweets too."

Stiles headed towards the guest bedroom, smiling to himself as he went. "You know me too well. What would I do without you?"

"You would probably get swallowed up by the celebrity lifestyle. The Aston's tank is full and don't worry about being noticed, just drive through from the wealthier side of the town that you told me about and people will think you're just rich. Try to stay out of sight the first couple of weeks, it'll do you good to not be surrounded by cameras for once."

Stiles laughed to himself. Amelia really deserves a pay rise for all the crap she has to out up with.

 

~~~~~

 

It was nearly 6am by the time Stiles got into Beacon Hills. The town was practically deserted, apart from a couple of dog walkers and people on their morning runs. He slowed down as he drove up to the Police Station, searching for his dads car which as per usual was sitting in the same space it always had. He drove into the car park and parked next to his dads car, the thought of putting his car to shame hadn't occurred until he was there. He stepped out and walked towards the doors, prepping himself for an encounter he didn't know the nature of. The receptionist looked up at him as he walked through the door, their mouth gaping open at the sight of him.

"Hi, is my dad - uh the sheriff around?" He asked, smiling.

The receptionist said nothing, merely nodded and pointed towards the door that lead to his dads office. Stiles gave a smile of thanks and proceeded into the next room where only a few deputies were at their desks, none of them paying the slightest attention of his presence. He proceeded to his dads office, stopping when he was outside, his stomach flipping. He knocked on the door and entered, standing at the doorway waiting for his dad to look up.

"Oh I'm sorry. Are you busy? Should I come back later?" Stiles asked, smiling.

His dad froze and looked up. He jumped out of his seat and ran over to Stiles, grabbing him and pulling him into a tight hug.

"Jesus dad, I've been in LA, not six feet under." He let go and looked at his dad who was smiling brightly.

"You know, a visit a couple times a year would have been nice. Hollywood keeping you too busy or were you avoiding Beacon Hills all together?"

"Bit of both I guess. Was nice to get away from werewolf drama for a bit."

"There hasn't actually been any supernatural stuff go on for a couple of weeks, it's a nice break. Not that I'm not happy to see you, but why are you here?"

Stiles looked to the floor and sat down. He breathed in deeply, trying to prepare himself. "Uh - so, you know the last time we spoke I told you about this new horror I was working on. Well I worked on it and um..."

"Stiles."

"Yeah, um, well it was quite dark. Which I didn't have a problem with, I knew what I was getting myself into of course but once we started filming it there were some things that reminded me of the past. It was fine at first, I had no problem with anything but then it got darker and it was too relatable."

"Relatable how?"

"Possession. I started getting night terrors again, about the Nogitsune. I started remembering stuff I thought I had forgotten. I haven't been sleeping at all really. My assistant, Amelia, was getting worried and we both agreed that I needed to take some time out, come back home."

The sheriff sat down next to Stiles, resting his hand on his shoulder. "How long has it been going on?"

Stiles lifted his head up and looked at his dad. "Couple of months."

"You gonna tell the others?"

"Not yet. I'll see how I go first, I don't want to worry them because, well, you know."

"They're going to smell the fear on you. Even if they don't they'll guess soon enough so best to tell them Stiles. I appreciate you telling me, although you didn't really have a choice considering I would've found out tonight."

"Yeah...I apologise in advance about that."

"You're my son Stiles. I supported you through it then and I'll support you through it now." He patted Stiles' shoulder, smiling at him reassuringly. "So, want to hear about what's happened since you've been away?"

"Hell yeah. But not in massive paragraphs, I'm too tired to digest that much information."

"Um - right, lets see. Erica and Boyd are engaged or are getting engaged. I don't know, it's either happened or gonna happen. Lydia is doing a Life Sciences degree at Brown but don't mention where she's studying, she's still bitter about not getting into Harvard and Yale. Isaac took over coach Finctock's place at the school and Derek - I haven't actually seen for a while so I don't know."  
  
"Why did Isaac take over coach? Where did he go?"

"Some guy called Greenberg started at the school and coach left the day after, said he had enough of him."

"Makes sense. He always hated Greenberg." Stiles paused for a few seconds. "Wait, where's Derek again?"

"Nobody knows. He left a few months ago and no one has seen or heard from him since."

"I would say that's weird but it's Derek, being mysterious and broody is his nature. Anyway, I'll go and let you work. Meet you for dinner later?" 

"Yeah, that would be great. I'll meet you at home."

Stiles got out of his seat, hugging his dad tightly. "I missed you dad."

"I missed you too son. Now go home and at least try to get some sleep, you look like crap."

Stiles laughed as he walked towards the door. "Always tell it how it is dad." He walked out of his dads office and through the set of doors, the receptionist still gaping at him. He smiled as he walked past and exited the station, breathing a sigh of relief as he was walking to his car. He pulled out his phone to see that it was 6.53am and sighed at the thought of enduring an entire day of being so tired. He sat in his car and thought of where to go next. The thought of going to his dads and attempting to sleep made Stiles shiver.

He sat there just staring out of the window for a while when the vibrating of his phone caught his attention. It was a message from Scott.

_Not so scary werewolf - just now  
Hey. Haven't spoken to you in a while. Just checking in to see how that new film is going along. Hope to see you soon bud. :)_

Stiles smiled to himself, a sudden urge to see Scott overwhelmed him. The message had just been sent so knocking on Scott's door wouldn't startle anyone. He started up his engine and drove out of the car park and through the town, which has become a lot busier since an hour ago. He had only ever been in Scott's house once, which was just before his and Allison's wedding a couple of years ago. He pulled up outside and sat there for a minute, taking in the subtle changes since the last time he had memorised it. 

He got out of his car and practically hopped to the front door with excitement. He rang the door bell and waited, bouncing around as he did. He heard voices coming from inside the house and eventually someone approached the door and began to open it. Allison was standing in front of him, her face fresh from sleep, her eyes wide and her mouth grinning largely. She grabbed Stiles' shoulder and pulled him into a tight hug, which was uncomfortable around his stomach. He let go of her and looked down to see it largely protrude.

"What the fuck? Are you pregnant?" Stiles asked, his eyes wide with shock.

"SCOTT!" Allison shouted. "COME DOWN HERE NOW!"

He heard footsteps running down the stairs but his attention was completely focused on Allison's large stomach. Scott ran to the door and froze, looking at Stiles the way Stiles was looking at Allison's stomach.

"Stiles? Oh my god what the fuck!" Scott grabbed Stiles and hugged him tightly, swaying him from side to side. Scott let go and Allison grabbed him again.

"What the hell are you doing here? I thought you were working on a film?" Allison asked, finally letting him go.

"No, first of all you's need to explain to me how the hell I didn't know about this!" Stiles replied, giving Scott a questioning look.

"Dude, I was going to tell you. The last time we spoke we only just found out and you know there's always a chance of miscarriage in the first three months so I didn't bother saying anything and we haven't spoken since. That's why I just texted you, so we could talk and I could tell you. It wasn't news you can just text to someone."

"I'm gonna ignore the fact that you didn't bother calling me again because I'm super happy right now. I always knew I was going to be a fun uncle one day." Stiles started grinning at the thought.

"Scott you go get dressed, Stiles is keeping me company. Come on in, I'm making you breakfast." Allison said, leading Stiles into the house.

"No, I'll be the one making you breakfast. You rest your feet." 

Stiles walked over to the kitchen whilst Allison sat at the breakfast bar. He rummaged around the cupboards, getting out some plates and cutlery, finding bread along the way and putting it in the toaster. He went to the fridge and grabbed some eggs and bacon and began to cook them.

"So, why are you back?"

"I just finished making that film you was on about. I'm quite exhausted, I haven't taken a break in a while so I thought it would be good to come back and see everyone." Stiles continued cooking the breakfast, occasionally looking at Allison.

"How long are you staying for?"

"To be honest I haven't thought about it. I'll leave whenever I feel like it I guess, which at first I knew was gonna be a few months but learning about your situation I'm definitely staying longer." The toaster dinged and Stiles buttered it and put it onto the plate, following the eggs and bacon. Hey put the three plates onto the breakfast bar. "HEY ASSHOLE, YOUR FOOD IS HERE!" 

"I don't want to be rude but Stiles you look like crap. Have you been sleeping recently?" Allison asked, digging into her food quickly.

"Yeah, I'm fine. I've just stayed up late the past few nights, working and stuff."

Scott ran down the stairs and slid into the kitchen, quickly shovelling down his food and putting his shoes on. "I'm sorry I can't stay for longer, I've got work. I'll come see you later okay?"

"Yeah dude that's fine. I'm taking out my dad out to dinner later so I'll text you."

"Alright dude, see you later." He clapped Stiles over the shoulder then ran over to Allison, kissing her on the cheek quickly. "Love you." He ran out the door and shut it loudly behind him.

"I'm really glad you're back Stiles. We haven't seen you properly for about what - five years?"

"Yeah I know. I'm sorry I haven't been back sooner I've just been kept on my feet for so long. But anyway, let's stop talking about me and get to the fact that you're carrying a little Allison Scott hybrid."

Alison laughed, eating the last of her food. "You make it seem so disgusting!"

"Well a life is growing inside your stomach which you will then have to physically push outside of yourself, I mean overall it's pretty disgusting."

Allison got up, put their plates in the sink and walked over to the sofa. She put her arm onto the sofa, supporting herself as she slowly began sitting down. "I'm about seven months pregnant. I'm on maternity leave from work already because my feet keep swelling up and stuff. Um - oh, we're having a little girl. Scott and dad are really excited."

Stiles walked over to the sofa and sat down, joining her. "I'm gonna buy her so much shit."

"Stiles, you really don't have to."

"I have more money than I know what to do with. I'm going to spoil my niece. I need to prepare for the role of fun uncle."

"You're an idiot Stiles." Allison punched Stiles and turned on the TV. Unexposed, one of Stiles' first films was playing on the TV.

"I'm constantly surrounded by myself. I can't escape."

"Disadvantages of being an actor I'm afraid."

They both sat there, talking and laughing. After a while they put on Silence of the Lambs but Stiles could feel himself drifting to sleep. He decided not to fight the urge as he felt safe in Allison's presence.

 

~~~~~

 

_Stiles ran down the corridor of the school and out through the doors. He was stopped short by the Nogitsune in his original form, surrounded by the Oni. He turned around, only to find that the Oni had moved positions. He turned back around to see himself standing there, but it was a paler version of himself._

_"You can't escape me Stiles. You can't escape what we did." He said, walking closer to Stiles._

_"I didn't do anything. You did it. All of it." He replied, taking a step back._

_Stiles ran through the gap between the Oni and continued running, not looking back. He ran back into the school and through to the locker room, closing the door behind him. He turned around to find the Nogitsune standing with his arms crossed, looking unimpressed but amused._

_"You can't escape from me Stiles. I'm a thousand years old, you think I wouldn't have thought you were going to run from me. Give me more credit than that." He walked up to Stiles and put his hand onto Stiles' shoulder._

_Stiles pushed his hand off quickly and with force. "Don't you dare touch me! Don't you fucking touch me!"_

_The Nogitsune pinned him up against the wall with so much force he thought he could feel the pain. "Look at that. Look at what we did."_

_Stiles turned his head to see Allison, Scott, Kira and Isaac fighting the Oni. Allison fired an arrow at one of the Oni which lodged itself in its stomach, yellow light glowing around it. The Oni dropped its sword and within seconds evaporated into black smoke. Stiles could see another Oni approaching Allison from behind, who was just beginning to turn around. The sword pierced all the way through her body, her face quickly turning from happiness caused by her previous action and into pain.  
_

_"Look at that Stiles. Look at the destruction. Isn't it just beautiful." The Nogitsune began laughing, letting go of Stiles._

_Stiles slid down the wall and onto the floor, tears falling from his eyes and down his face. He looked up to see the scene in front of him had disappeared, the Nogitsune bending down in front of him. He grabbed Stiles' neck and began squeezing hard._

_"You think you can just sit there and treat me like that. There are consequences Stiles. Who should I kill next? Scott? Lydia? Derek?"_

_Stiles' eyes widened, his cheeks boiling with anger._

_"Derek huh? I wouldn't have put money on you being queer." The Nogitsune laughed and let Stiles go, waiting for a response._

_Stiles gasped, getting his breath back. He rubbed his throat, partly for protection and the other part trying to feel the bruise. "I - I'm not gay."_

_The Oni appeared from the shadows, their swords pointing at Stiles. The Nogitsune smiled and laughed as the Oni were getting closer towards him. He could feel his pulse beginning to quicken, his breath becoming quicker. He started shaking, tears rolling from his eyes again until all he could see was darkness._

 

_~~~~~_

 

"Stiles? STILES!" Allison shouted, shaking Stiles awake.

Stiles eyes jolted open. His heartbeat was rapid and he was out of breath, sweat dripping down his face. He looked at Allison who had her bow in hand, looking at Stiles with intense concern. His whole body was shaking as he tried to sit up. Allison sat down next to him, resting her hand on his shoulder as he tried to get his breathing under control.

"What the hell happened Stiles? I went upstairs, I left you for two minutes and you started screaming. I thought someone was attacking you!"

"Night terrors." His voice was shaky. "Um, I keep getting night terrors again, about - uh, the Nogitsune. About what he did and what I did."

"Stiles, none of that was your fault. You had no control. There was no way you could have fought him."

"I - I saw you get stabbed again. Even though I wasn't there, he was. I saw everything he saw. Felt everything he did even when we were separated. I can't deal with it anymore Allison, I just can't deal with it. It hurts too much."

Stiles started sobbing and Allison pulled him in tightly, letting his tears dampen her shoulder. They just sat there in silence, Stiles crying on Allison's shoulder who was gently rubbing his back. After a while Stiles pulled away, wiping his sticky, wet face with the sleeve of his jumper.

"Stiles, we can sort this out. We will deal with it, one thing at a time. I promise you I will do whatever I can to make it stop."

"You can't tell the others. Please. Not yet. I'll tell them when I'm ready." 

"That's why you came back, isn't it?"

"I couldn't deal with it alone in LA, I just couldn't."

The door bell rang and Allison tried to get up. Stiles shook his head and ran to the door, slowly opening it. A tall man with dark hair, dark jeans and a leather jacket stood at the foot of the door. He lifted his head up to reveal his face.

"Derek?"


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I was given two pieces of coursework and then my film studies teacher sprang a surprise coursework on me so I've been really busy. Started Once Upon A Time as well, oops. Sorry for the lil cliffhanger in the last chapter and this one, I just love cliffhangers. Any feedback is appreciated. Enjoy lads.

**Six Years Ago**

_Stiles was running through the woods, trying to outrun the bright blue eyes of the Coyote that was chasing after him. He knew from the fur that it wasn't Malia, it was black with no markings unlike Malia who was grey with white markings so it had to be Derek._

_He couldn't understand why Derek was chasing him. He had been gone for years to stay with people like him, to control his new form. Yet three years later and it seemed like he was even more out of control than when Peter had described Derek's troubles through the first few full moons._

_He could hear Scott, Isaac, Erica and Boyd running after them, calling Derek's name. Stiles kept running, his heart pounding, his chest rapidly rising and falling, his legs beginning to feel weak, slowing him down. He turned around to see that Derek had nearly caught up with him and he tried to sprint with all his might but his legs failed him, wobbling underneath him._

_Stiles fell to the ground hard, his right arm landing on a stump of a tree. He yelled out in pain, cradling his arm as he turned around to face the oncoming Coyote._

_"Derek please, I know you're in there. This isn't you! Please!" Stiles pleaded, his face scrunching up in pain._

_Derek stopped running and began stalking Stiles, slowly getting closer and closer. His teeth were showing and his eyes began to flash the iridescent blue that Stiles had always found beautiful but hated the meaning behind them. Such a beautiful colour didn't deserve such a horrible memory._

_Derek was in his face now and Stiles was leaning as far into the ground as he could. He began to growl, saliva dripping down from his chin and onto Stiles' face._

_Stiles was breathing heavily, tears beginning to form in his eyes. "Derek...please." Stiles shut his eyes tightly, preparing himself for an excruciating injury._

_"Derek!" Scott growled. He was on his hands and knees, eyes bright red._

_Stiles opened his eyes to see Derek, in his human form, next to him. Stiles took off his jumper and his shirt, giving them to Derek so he could cover himself up. His muscles were of no comparison compared to Derek's, but at least there was some definition there._

_"What the hell happened Derek?" Stiles asked, getting up slowly, trying to avoid putting any pressure on his right arm._

_"Nothing. I had everything under control." He replied, not even looking at Stiles._

_"Wait, what?"_

_"You constantly jeopardise every single mission we're on Stiles. Every single damn time!"_

_"You tried to kill him because you think he fucks up? Hell Derek, we all fuck up." Isaac snapped back, his face reddening with anger._

_"He fucks up each and every time. He shouldn't be part of this pack and when one of us thinks someone shouldn't be part of the pack then we kill them."_

_"You were gonna kill me because you think I'm useless?"_

_"No, Coyote's may think that but werwolves don't Derek. You know that." Malia snapped back, her eyes the iridescent blue and her arms wrapped around Stiles._

_"Name one time where he fucked up big. I guarantee you can't name a single event." Erica piped up from the back._

_"He was dumb enough to get possessed by the Nogitsune which nearly got us all killed! Especially Allison. He's so weak he couldn't even fight it."_

_Everyone fell silent and turned towards Stiles who was looking at the floor, tears filling his eyes. The colour fell from his face and the memories of the Nogitsune came flooding back. He wriggled out of Malia's light embrace and started walking towards the outside of the forest, towards his car. He said nothing to the pack as he departed and he especially didn't turn around. He wouldn't let Derek see him cry, although he knew he could smell the sadness evaporating off of him._

~~~~~

 

Derek stood at the foot of the door, his hands in his trouser pockets. He gave Stiles a small smile and Stiles began to feel the blood rise up into his cheeks.

"I didn't know you were back in town." Derek said, giving Stiles a slightly bigger smile.

Stiles' heart rate began to rise and he could feel the anger overcome him. Derek stood there, his eyebrows furrowed, giving Stiles a confused look. They stood there for a couple of seconds, just staring at each other before Stiles stepped forward, opened his mouth to say something and instead raised his fist and punched Derek hard in the face. 

"Fuck you. Dick." Stiles replied, turning around and slamming the door in Derek's face.

He walked back inside to see Allison, now standing up, walking towards him. Stiles shut his eyes to try to shake the memory of that night but instead it turned into him trying to compose himself, to stop the tears.

"Stiles..." Alison began but stopped at the look she received.

Stiles grabbed his keys and walked towards the door again, sighing just before he opened it. Derek was still standing there, staring at Stiles with an expressionless face whilst Stiles barged him out of the way and drove off.

He had no idea where to go but just kept driving, trying to get as far away as possible from Derek. As he drove on he spotted the sign for the preserve and considering most significant supernatural fights happened in that very forest Stiles didn't really give a shit about protecting himself. He pulled up into the tiny car park, got out of his car and started walking into the depths of the forest, attempting to blow off some steam.

He walked for miles, having absolutely no destination in mind when he heard twigs crack under pressure. He turned around to see a Coyote, iridescent blue eyes shining, walking up towards him.

"You don't have to stalk me you know. I'm perfectly capable of taking care of myself." Stiles said, raising his eyebrows at the animal.

The Coyote snarled and ran behind the tree, the leaves rustling the longer it was there. A few moments later, Malia walked around the tree, fully clothed.

"I know. I've seen the pictures. You're all buff now. Could probably give Derek a run for his money." Malia replied, laughing.

"How the hell did you cary those around with you?"

"I didn't. I hide clothes everywhere in the forest, just in case I ever need to turn back while I'm out here."

"You've hardly changed."

"Yeah well it hasn't exactly been twenty years."

"Everyone I've seen so far is complaining that five years is too long."

"Time flies when you've got things to kill I guess. Speaking of people, there is a hint of Derek in your scent. Why?"

"I was round Allison's when Derek showed up."

"Shit. What did you do?"

"Punched him in the face. Probably didn't do anything but it felt really good."

"What did he say?"

"Opened up the conversation with 'I didn't know you were back in town' and finished with me saying fuck off." 

"I'm guessing that's why you're in the middle of the forest completely unprotected."

"Basically."

They walked around the forest, talking, for hours and hours. Stiles told Malia about his upcoming films, including the one he just finished and how it brought up the past. Malia spoke about her job and how well her and Peter were getting along. By the time they had finished catching each other up the sun was brightly placed in the middle of the sky, heat searing down.

"So your night terrors, is it everything you remember when you were possessed?"

"No. Well sometimes it is but other times it's like the Nogitsune is taunting me still, playing with what I'm thinking and feeling."

"And what have you been thinking about?"

Stiles sat there, silent for a moment and remembered what the Nogitsune had said to him this morning. He could feel his heart beat rise, confusion and fear clouding his brain. Since an early age he had been battling with his sexuality, hiding the confusion and the frustration. He hadn't even mentioned it to Scott, too afraid of what he might have thought of him. 

He goes back to the moment where he first saw Derek. He was scared of Derek and his reputation yet confused at how attracted he was to him. Originally he had brushed it off but it kept eating away at him, making him think about his sexuality even more.

"Stiles? What's wrong?" Malia asked, putting her hand on Stiles' shoulder.

Stiles looked at her, his brows creased and his eyes sad. "I'm so fucking tired of hiding who I am. About ten years ago I figured out that I was bi and at first I didn't think anything of it but then I realised how society is still such a fucking mess and I was just so scared of telling anyone. I know everyone was so accepting of Danny but I just felt like if I told people then everyone would care more because it would've come out so late and I just don't think I could've dealt with the attention. Scott doesn't even know. I never told him. My best friend and I didn't even fucking tell him Malia!"

"I knew."

"What?"

"When we were dating. I knew. I saw the way you looked at Derek and some of the guys around school, when you thought no one was looking. That's why I was so fucked off at Derek that night. I knew how much it was hurting you inside."

"It makes sense now! You tried to slash Derek on the full moon about a week later and I was so confused because I knew you had it under control."

"Yeah, well, I couldn't just try to kill him on an ordinary day. Figured if I killed him on the full moon your dad would let me off, pass it as a mountain lion."

"You were gonna kill Derek, for me?"

"Stiles I could practically hear your heart break in half. I wanted to torture the asshole for what he did to you. Blaming Allison on you was low. He knew about your night terrors a couple of years before and that the panic attacks had just gone. He knew you were still feeling guilty about every single thing the Nogitsune had done and yet he still blamed you for it. I wanted him to suffer for hurting you like that."

"I feel strangely touched."

"I wish we could sit here for longer but I've got work and you look like crap. Go home, hide that flashy car you're parading in and get some sleep. Or at least try."

"I can only try."

Malia changed back into a Coyote and ran off into the distance, leaving her clothes in a pile on the floor. Stiles picked them up, folded them and returned them to the tree that Malia had changed behind. 

The walk back to the car park was a long and lonely one. When he reached it he stood there in wonder as to where his jeep was, only realising that he had driven in his Aston. He sat in the car, feeling the leather interior and started to miss the homely feel of his old, battered, run down jeep. As he started the engine and drove out of the car park, back towards home he decided that he was going to fix up his jeep today considering Malia's advice of sleep was out of the question.

He picked up some tools, pretty sure managing to avoid being seen and drove back home. He parked his Aston on the side of the road and opened garage door to see his trusty jeep sitting there as though a day hadn't past. He grabbed the keys off the work surface and tried to start the engine but resulted into pushing it onto the driveway instead. 

He thought about working inside the garage but it was too small and the risk of being seen was no longer a priority for Stiles. He felt at home and the talk with Malia made him feel safe. For once he didn't care about the stories that would be printed. Stiles in a greasy shirt working on a thirty year old jeep was hardly a story in his eyes, although it might make some of his fans die with overexcitement.

He opened the hood of the jeep only to see basically everything covered in duck tape, which made him laugh to himself. Years later and owning an expensive car he still didn't know how to repair a thing, although all the time he would be spending not sleeping, YouTube tutorials would pass the time.

As he shut the hood a car pulled up alongside his house. He turned around to see Isaac getting out of his car and smiled to himself, the memories of all the good times flooding back into his brain, temporarily suppressing his worry of the night terrors.

"Long time no see. Where you been asshole?" Isaac chuckled, giving Stiles a quick, light hug.

"Been staying away from your sorry ass." Stiles laughed back. "Come on in, I'll see if we have any beer."

They walked inside and Stiles stopped in the middle of the front room. He had just realised that he hadn't been at home yet, so this was the first time in five years that he stepped foot into his childhood home.

"Feels weird to be back huh?" Isaac said, settling down on the sofa.

Stiles walked over to the fridge and got two beers, taking in the subtle changes of the kitchen and walked back into the front room, handing Isaac a beer whilst settling down next to him. "You have absolutely no idea."

"You've seen Derek then?"

"Allison or Malia spoke to you?"

"No. I can smell his scent on you slightly. It's quite hidden underneath Allison's, Scott's, Malia's and the overwhelming stench of fear and anxiety that's practically evaporating off of you."

"I've just been going through some shit recently."

"Hollywood treating you like shit?"

"No, Hollywood treats me like an object. My mind is treating me like shit."

"Because it's you I'm gonna say your panic attacks have started again."

"And night terrors."

"That explains why you look like shit." 

"Fuck you man." Stiles laughed and sipped his beer.

"Listen man, you need some sleep. I didn't want to say anything but you look seriously ill. I'll hang around just in case you wake up."

"I'm terrified of going to sleep. Sometimes I wake up so petrified that I sit in the corner for hours, waiting for the torment to continue. It's a nightmare I can't wake up from. I used to wake up and sob but there are no tears left. I'm so tired. I just need help."

"Then I'll take you to Deaton. We'll see what he can do. Come on."

Isaac put down his beer and grabbed Stiles' arm, pulling him up. They walked outside and Isaac walked towards his car, Stiles followed in peruse. He got into the car of the Toyota and wondered if this would be the type of car he got if he hadn't become an actor. He smiled to himself, knowing that he would most likely still have the jeep.

 

~~~~~

 

They pulled up in front of the animal clinic, Scott's car parked in one of the bays. Stiles smiled to himself. He hadn't realised that he was still working at the clinic, after all these years. When he got out of the car he froze, realising that he would have to tell Scott about his night terrors.

As they walked through the door and into the reception Deaton walked around the corner.

"Ah Stiles. Welcome back. Scott told me you were back in town. What may I help you with?" He asked, lifting up the counter.

"I keep getting night terrors again." Stiles replied, looking towards the floor.

Scott ran around the corner, his face looking concerned. "Wait, what? When did they start again? Why didn't you tell me?"

"I didn't want to worry you man."

Scott opened his mouth to reply but Deaton hushed him.

"Go on Stiles. Continue." 

"It's not like before. Last time the memories of what happened while I was possessed haunted me but this time it's like the Nogitsune has possessed me again. He's taunting me. He's playing with what I'm thinking. Last time I eventually got over it but this time it's getting so bad I feel like it's going to kill me."

"Dude. You know it's not your fault right?" 

"Yeah, well that's kind of hard considering Derek's face reminded me that it sort of was."

"Stiles. Come with me. I want to try something." Deaton said as he walked around the corner and into the depths of the clinic.

Stiles, Isaac and Scott followed around the corner to see Deaton prepping the table with a blanket and a pillow.

"What's that for?" Isaac asked, leaning on one of the work surfaces.

"I'm going to monitor Stiles' brain activity while he sleeps. Look for anything abnormal."

Stiles' eyes went wide. "No! I already had my one night terror per day, I don't want another one."

"We need to see what your brain activity is like during your sleep."

"Please Deaton. I can't."

Stiles felt a tap on his shoulder. He turned around to see Derek, who's fist collided with Stiles' face, sending him down to the floor, unconscious.

"Derek what the fuck?" Scott shouted, pushing Derek, his eyes glowing red.

"Well he wasn't going to sleep willingly." Derek replied, folding his arms.

"That's what sleeping pills are for you fucking idiot! What the hell are you doing here anyway?"

"I'm trying to help."

"Help? The last time you properly saw Stiles you told him that it's his fault for nearly killing Allison. Who doesn't blame him by the way."

"I thought that at the time. My opinion since then has changed."

"You didn't have a problem with him before you left to go coyote control club."

"This is a discussion you two can discuss at a later date. Thank you Derek but your actions weren't necessary. Please, if you could put Stiles onto the table it would be much appreciated."

Derek began crouching down when Scott and Isaac barged him out of the way. He stepped back and took Isaac's spot, watching as they struggled to get Stiles onto the table.

Deaton rolled out a brain monitoring machine from one of the cupboards, attaching the wires onto various parts of Stiles' head.

"And now we wait."

 

~~~~~

 

_Stiles was taped down to a wooden chair, duck tape covering his wrists and ankles. He tried to speak, shout out for help but his mouth was taped shut._

_"You know, I was surprised to see you hit Derek. All those emotions when you saw him. Wow! You do have some serious problems with him don't you?" The Nogitsune said, his face getting closer to Stiles'._

_Stiles' breathing began getting heavy through anger. The Nogitsune yanked the tape off of Stiles' face and laughed as Stiles yelped in pain._

_"Fuck. You." Stiles spat at the Nogitsune._

_"Oh yes please. Oh don't worry, you'll love it. But then again you already know that." The Nogitsune began pacing up and down, the Oni slowly appearing out of the shadows. "You surprised me there Stiles. I admit, I didn't think you were gay. Oh no, what's the word. Bisexual. Sorry, I'm a thousand years old, it's hard to keep track on these types of things. But don't worry Stiles, I don't judge. I wouldn't have put Derek as your type, although I can see the appeal."_

_"I don't like Derek. Not even as a friend."_

_"I can only imagine how much it hurt for your little crush to tell you that the near death of your best friends future wife was your fault. Don't worry, I don't blame you. Don't want you taking credit for all of my work."  
_

_"Why don't you just kill me already? Surely you've had enough of me by now?"_

_"Kill you? No, no, no. I like having you around. It's fun."_

_The Nogitsune started laughing, getting closer and closer to Stiles. Stiles began to lean back into his chair, trying to escape the Nogitsune. When Stiles could lean back no more the Nogitsune pulled away and turned around towards the Oni, who were now standing in a straight line behind him. The Nogitsune grabbed a sword from one of the Oni, twirling it around as he turned back towards Stiles._

_Before Stiles could even register the threat the Nogitsune had plunged the sword through Stiles' abdomen. He let out a scream in pain as the Nogitsune twisted the sword slowly, piercing his insides even more. Blood began trickling from his mouth and down his chin._

_"See Stiles. Why would I kill you when I could do this all day?"_

 

~~~~~

 

Stiles' eyes darted open, his head pounding from the sudden bright lights. The familiarity of a sore throat and sweat dripping from his head saddened him. As his eyes adjusted the room began to become clearer. Deaton, Isaac and Scott were standing around him, concerned looks on their faces. He tried sitting up, pain quickly striking his head.

"Take it easy Stiles." Scott said, grabbing his arm and gently helping him up.

As he sat up he forgot about his pain and could only feel rage at the sight of Derek. Everyone in the room could feel his emotions shift, even Deaton.

"What the fuck is he doing here? And why the fuck did he punch me?" Stiles tensed, his anger growing stronger.

"Things this morning didn't exactly go to plan. So I came here to see if you were okay." Derek replied, walking towards Stiles.

"Okay? Oh wow. It's only taken you six years to get your fucking head out of your ass." Stiles got off of the table, pulling the wires off his head. "It's gonna take you more than that to expect me to forgive you after what you did. And knocking me out isn't exactly a good way to start."

"I know, I'm trying to work on it."

"Aw Derek you're so sweet. And by that I mean you're still a fucking douchebag, in case you still don't understand sarcasm." Stiles turned to Deaton, rubbing the back of his neck as he did so. "So, what's the verdict?"

"There's no indication to say that you're unwell. Everything at a medical point of view is normal." Deaton replied, rolling away the equipment.

"So why aren't they getting any better?"

"Are you taking any form of medication? For example, anti-depressants."

"Uh - well, yeah. That's exactly what I'm taking."

"Stiles, why didn't you say anything?" Scott walked over and put his hand on Stiles' shoulder.

"I didn't want anyone to worry."

"I thought you stopped taking them?"

"After the whole wild hunt incident I went back on them. When it was over I started thinking about when everyone forgot me, before I was taken. I couldn't cope."

"What event happened to trigger the night terrors?" Deaton asked, walking out from the cupboard.

"I just finished this horror film about possession and stuff. Brought back some of the memories that I pushed down."

"Well that was an idiot move." Derek piped up from the corner of the room.

"I thought you were trying to be nice to me? When I first read the script it was a good idea. Filming most of the scenes were fine but then we got to the hard core possession scene and I had a breakdown, nothing I haven't handled before but the outcome wasn't anything I had anticipated."

"I'm afraid I can't give you any advice. Usually overtime the night terrors stop, you grow out of it. Medication and certain illnesses are the cause of night terrors which normally have hardly any effect on an individual which are usually young children, but due to your history and your age I'm afraid it has more of an impact. I could suggest trying to come off of your medication but it seems like you rely on it too heavily so I'm afraid your only option is to wait it out." Deaton walked over to Stiles, putting his hand on his shoulder. "I'm afraid only you can try to sort this out Stiles."

"I was hoping you wouldn't say that. Thanks anyway Deaton and I'm sorry for wasting your time."

"You never waste my time Stiles. I'm here for help and guidance. Remember that."

Stiles smiled and walked towards the waiting room of the practice. As he turned around the corner he could see a purple face and glowing green eyes. His eyes grew wide in shock and he walked back around the corner, facing the others.

"Stiles?" Derek asked, his face in a frown.

"Holy shit, it's...Kate."


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am so sorry for the lack of chapters over the past whatever months. I'm not going to lie, I genuinely just forgot that I even started this. But now that it's winter my time is no longer occupied by the outside world so more chapters. Thanks for being so patient. I don't know when the next chapter will be but it won't be like 8 months. Any feedback is appreciated. Enjoy lads.

Derek's eyes grew wide and he ran out into the reception area. Stiles stood in front of Scott and Isaac with a look of complete disappointment on his face. "I haven't been here for a whole fucking day and some supernatural shit happens. Do I have this scent that supernatural beings just like to follow or is it just some sort of irritating coincidence?" Stiles said, pacing up and down the room.

He could hear muffled words coming from the reception area. He knew Scott and Isaac were listening to every word. Stiles could feel his heart beat begin to rise and his hands began to shake. The thought of Kate being back made his skin crawl. Her intentions, as always, were completely unknown but he had a feeling, a very obvious feeling, that she was here for Allison. He felt an immediate need to be around Allison, to protect her and the baby.

"Dude, what's wrong? You stink of anxiety." Scott asked, looking at him with concern.

"Has Kate tried to make any contact with Allison that you know of?" Stiles replied.

Scott and Isaac's eyes widened at what Stiles was insinuating. Scott shook his head, which was all Stiles needed to know. He walked out into the reception area and Isaac followed. Derek and Kate hadn't realised Stiles was in the room until he barged past Derek and was standing directly in front of Kate. Stiles looked at her with pure hatred. 

"Nice to know your feelings for me are so strong Stiles. God look at you, I could just stand here all day and admire that body." Kate said, walking closer to Stiles.

"What do you want Kate? I didn't come back to Beacon Hills to deal with your shit." Stiles spat.

"Maybe I just wanted to enjoy some old memories of my home town."

"Oh, so committing mass murder on an innocent family is a fond memory for you?"

"They were werewolves."

"Yeah well so are you."

"Touché. Listen I don't want to crash your little health assessment here. I've got some shit to do." She began to turn and walked towards the door.

Stiles grabbed her wrist and pulled her back. Derek and Isaac looked on with wide eyes. "And I hope you're not planning on seeing Allison during your short stay."

Kate smirked and pulled her wrist back. "And what are you, weak and powerless Stiles, going to do if I see her?"

Stiles didn't hesitate but to move in to her personal space. He was so close to her that he could feel her breath against his face. "Since becoming famous I have more money than I know what to do with but being surrounded by the supernatural during my teen years I thought it would be a great idea to acquire some  _items_. One of those items is a shit ton of yellow wolfsbane for the sole purpose of being used on people like you. So Kate, if you want to see Allison then after you will officially be dead this time around."

"Is that really a threat? Because you're not really good at it." Kate snorted. 

"Believe what you want Kate, but I will be watching." Stiles barged Kate out of the way and exited the clinic and walked over to Isaac's car. 

The first couple of minutes of the journey were travelled in silence until Isaac could no longer hold his excitement. "Dude, that was awesome! Do you really have yellow wolfsbane though?"

"Of course. I got some around the time that article about me buying drugs came out. I mean they're not totally wrong but it's just not a drug for humans. Or even a drug for that matter. Lied about having loads though, it's really rare to come by so I only managed to get a little bit." Stiles replied.

"Any werewolves in LA or just felt the need to be prepared?'

"Since after being taken by the wild hunt I wanted to be ready for anything. The thought of having something that could kill you's makes my skin crawl but we need it, for when people like Kate show up. People who can't be reasoned with."

Within minutes of finishing their conversation they arrived outside of Scott's house. Stiles waited before knocking as Isaac checked the perimeter, to see if Kate had already shown up. Isaac came around to the porch with the all clear and Stiles knocked on the door lightly, waiting for Allison to waddle to the door. She looked confused but smiled anyway and gestured for them to come in. 

Stiles could feel his anxiety rise as he was preparing himself to tell her. The last time Allison had seen Kate was when Peter thought he had killed her. Allison knew she was alive, Scott and Stiles made sure she knew, but she had never seen Kate as the monster she had become.

"I have to say it Stiles but I'm not a werewolf and even I can smell the anxiety evaporating off of you. Please don't tell me something has happened." Allison asked, walking to the sofa and sitting down.

Stiles walked through the living room and joined her. "There's no easy way to say it so I'm just going to go ahead and say it. Kate's back. We don't know whether she knows that you're pregnant or not but I don't want to risk leaving you alone. Not until there's a pack meeting and we decide the best course of action."

"I'll call the pack, let them know the situation and get them to meet here. They'll be a while though. Pack meeting is a proper welcome home huh Stiles." Isaac said, whilst dialling some numbers on his phone.

"Stiles, why don't you rest your head. It's going to be a while till the pack get here because of work. I'm assuming you went to Deaton about everything?" Allison asked.

"Yeah, Deaton said I was fine. There's nothing wrong from a medical standpoint. He said that I just have to wait it out." Stiles replied, fiddling with his fingers.

"Come on, lay your head on my lap. I'm sure it will help make you feel safer. Plus you look like shit Stiles, you need sleep."

Stiles laughed a little and laid his head down on Allison's lap. She began to stroke her fingers through his hair and he embraced her touch by leaning into it. Her touch made him feel safe and grounded. Within minutes he could feel his eyes slowly begin to close from the comfort of his current position. Knowing that the pack was on their way made him realise that he hadn't felt this safe since the last time he was in Beacon Hills, all those years ago.

He tried to not think of the night terror that was to come, instead focusing on the positives of the pack and his diagnosis from Deaton. For the first time in a while he didn't fear sleep but instead embraced it.

 

~~~~~

 

_The room was dark, the dampness and clear mould on the walls made the hairs on Stiles' arm stand on end. The setting seemed all too familiar to Stiles, but unlike the usual Beacon Hills setting that his night terrors seemed to take place in. He walked around the barely visible room, taking in certain features to try and get a clear image of where he was. After walking around for a while he realised that it was the set of Midnight Oak, Stiles' new film about the supernatural and possession that hadn't been released yet._

_He walked over to the old, rotting door in the corner of the room and slowly opened it. The door creaked loudly, the familiarity of the sound in horror films made Stiles cringe. The shock of seeing Derek chained up on the other side paralysed Stiles' body and mind. Nothing and everything went through his head. After a few seconds his mind sprang back into action, telling his feet to run over and to unchain Derek._

_"Stiles. Just go. Save yourself." Derek said, gasping for air._

_"Come on_ _sourwolf. I know I should fucking hate your guts right now but we're pack. And no one leaves a pack member behind." Stiles replied, smiling at him sympathetically._

_"I'm sorry Stiles. I-I never meant to hurt you. I was angry. Angry at myself. For not telling you -"_

_"Nope. No. We're not doing this now. Let's get you out of here big guy."_

_Slowly, Stiles managed to rid Derek of the chains. He dragged Derek up by the arm and flung him over his own shoulder, forcing all of Derek's weight upon himself. Luckily, since becoming an actor he gained some well needed muscle, therefore making it easier to carry the semi-conscious wolf._

_With no indication all of Derek's weight had gone and Stiles was pushed up against the wall without even realising what was going on. Derek's claws were out, the sharp edges brushing across his face. "You're so easy to fool Stiles. I'm a trickster, I trick people. I can literally take any form in these terrors of yours. What part of that do you not understand?"_

_"Sometimes I ask myself the same question." Stiles replied, sighing. After having so many night terrors he thought he would no longer fall for the Nogitsune's tricks._

_"Imagine if it was Derek being the friend who was possessed instead of whatever his name. Who is it again? That Spider-Man kid? Would you risk your life to save him or be ballsy and save yourself from the same fate? I mean I guess we already know the answer from this little experiment, don't we?"_

_"I guess we'll both have to wait to find out what scene the director decided to use when the film comes out, huh."_

_"I guess so Stiles. I guess so." The Nogitsune smirked and slowly dug his claws through Stiles' torso._

_Stiles screamed in agony as the claws slashed through his fragile skin. He could feel himself lose consciousness from the immense pain he was enduring. His attention was diverted slightly from the pain when he could hear his name being called from the distance. The voice sounded familiar, he knew he recognised it but couldn't quite place a finger on it. As he slipped further into consciousness his name was shouted louder and louder._

 

_~~~~~_

 

"STILES!" A familiar voice shouted.

Stiles jolted awake with a fright, immediately shutting his eyes from the blinding light of the room. He slowly opened his eyes, making sure they adjusted to the rooms light before focusing his attention on the pain coming from his chest. Without paying any attention to his surroundings he got up from the sofa and walked over to the mirror, lifting his shirt up to address the location of the pain. There was a set of thin claw marks running down from his shoulder to his abdomen. He looked at his hands to see one of them stained with a blood, especially at the fingertips. 

A hand gently touched his shoulder and spun him around. "Stiles?" Lydia asked. Her eyes full of concern. She hadn't aged at all since the last time Stiles had seen her.

"Oh my god, LYDIA!" Stiles grabbed her and pulled her into a tight embrace. "Thank you."

"For what?" She replied, easing out of his grip.

"You called for me. My name. You called my name. I could hear you. It's like you brought me out of my nightmare. Well, at least being a banshee doesn't just mean harbinger of death am I right?" Stiles smirked, only to be met with many sympathetic faces.

Stiles looked around the room to see Lydia, Scott, Allison, Derek, Malia, Boyd, Erica, Isaac, Liam and Mason staring at him, each with different variations of concern on their faces.

"Stiles, why didn't you tell us it got this bad? Why didn't you tell Deaton?" Scott asked, walking over to him.

"It didn't, I mean, th-that's never happened before. I've never done that. Ever." Stiles replied, feeling confused at the progress in his situation. "But, this is a situation I am willing to ignore for the moment as we have more pressing matters to address."

"Just for today Stiles. We'll ignore it for today. Until we get a plan. But after that it's being talked about whether you like it or not." Malia said, giving him a stern look.

"Jesus, alright." Stiles replied. "Hello, guys. Erica, Boyd, you're uh-looking well. Still going strong, that's great. Liam, Mason. Good to see you's too. Um-I guess that's reunions done for now. So. Any ideas for a plan?"

"I was thinking maybe someone watch Allison at all times. We can't trust Kate enough to leave Allison alone for a second, knowing her she wouldn't be able to help herself. It's not ideal but with the baby ready to drop soon it's a necessary precaution." Lydia suggests.

"I can take care of myself, I don't need people watching over me." Allison snaps back.

"What would happen if Kate ran after you, huh? What would happen if you had to fight her and you got hurt? Yeah, you're still capable of protecting yourself but that's only with a bow and arrow. Physically you're not in the right condition if it came down to close and personal fighting. Stress for the baby at any part of the pregnancy isn't good, but this kind of stress at this stage, who knows what would happen to the baby." Derek replied, a hint of concern showing on his face.

"Wow. I think that's the most emotion I have ever seen you show. What happened whilst I was away?" Stiles asked, smirking.

"Shut up Stiles. Is me caring about something a concept hard for you to understand?"

"Yeah. It is actually."

"Okay, both of you shut up. Now is not the time to argue." Erica snapped. 

"It's not a solution but I guess it's a plan. I'm sorry Allison but someone being with you all the time is probably best. At least this way you can still get out of the house." Scott said, rubbing Allison's arm.

"Come on. No doom and gloom. This is only temporary. Whilst we're all here, why don't we have a pack night? I'll order in a shit ton of pizza and we put on a couple of movies? Try and make light of the situation." Stiles suggests.

"Dude, what about your dad? He has barely seen you." Scott says.

"I'll tell him. He'll understand. Plus I'm on a somewhat forced vacation so I've got a lot of time to see him."

Stiles went outside onto the porch swing and ordered a couple of everything on the menu, including sides and desserts. Now that money wasn't an option splashing out on food was a no brainer. He sat there for a moment before ringing his dad. He knew his dad would be disappointed considering he just got home but Stiles knew that he would understand. He always does.

"Hey dad, sorry I know you're still at work." Stiles said down the phone.

"Hey son. What's up? We're still on for tonight, right?" Noah replied.

"That's actually what I wanted to talk about. Listen, we encountered a little problem that sparked a spontaneous pack movie night."

"What happened?"

"Kate's back. We don't know why or for how long. We're adamant she's going to try and see Allison so we called for a meeting, decided that someone needs to be with her at all times until we figure out how to get rid of Kate. Everyone seemed so gloomy so I suggested movie night with pizza. I hope you're cool with it?"

"Of course Stiles. I'll put Parrish on the lookout for her. Update him on the situation. Don't worry about me, tonight's usually the night Scott and Allison see Melissa so I'll let her know they won't make it and she'll probably force me to join her and Chris for dinner."

"They're still going strong, huh?"

"Yeah. It's getting serious if you ask me. I'm glad she's happy though."

"Yeah, she deserves it. If you see her, wish her the best from me. Tell her I'll see her soon."

"Okay Stiles. Be careful."

"Okay. Speak later."

Stiles hung up and just sat on the porch swing, taking in the warm summer breeze. His mind wandered to his hands, how one was bloodstained with his own blood. His mind wandered to the possibilities of what was happening to him. Some had complicated but not impossible explanations and others had supernatural explanations that Stiles was hoping to not be true. Without Stiles even noticing Derek was now sitting next to him on the swing.

"What do you want?" Stiles asked, still looking down at his hands.

"Came to see if you were okay. I could hear your heartbeat begin to rise. Bet you didn't even notice." Derek replied.

"Oh what, so you care about me now? That's a first."

"I always cared Stiles, even if I don't show it."

"Care? You tried to kill me-"

"-I tried to scare you."

"Scare me? Why the fuck would you want to scare me like that Derek? I thought you were going to kill me! You-you broke me. And I didn't come back from that for a long time. A really long time."

"After hearing what happened with the wild hunt. How you were nearly completely wiped from existence, I didn't want you getting involved anymore. I mean the whole pack didn't want you getting involved anymore but they couldn't bring themselves to say anything. And they knew that you would ignore them if they said anything. So I put matters into my own hands. And I know the way I did it was wrong Stiles, I know. But it worked. I would rather you be alive and away from all of this and hating me than being involved and getting killed."

"The others, they had no clue. Did they?"

"No. The way I did it made them think that the wolf side of me was angry. Apart from Malia. She straight away knew that it wasn't. Can be annoying how she can relate."

"Yeah, I really don't know how to respond right now. Kind of a shock after thinking for years that you were going to kill me."

"Hopefully you'll sleep better. I hope anyway. I don't know what's going on with you and honestly it's kind of freaking me out."

"Freaking you out? Dude, I just woke up clawing at myself. I think I'm the one entitled to be freaking out right now."

Stiles' attention was diverted to the car pulling up along the house. Theo got out of the car, beginning to stack pizza boxes in his arms. "Are you's going to help me or just sit there like idiots all day?" Theo asked.

"What the fuck are you doing with my pizzas?" Stiles asked, walking down from the porch. 

"Liam texted, saying you were back in town. That shit happened and now there's a pack movie night. He told me I should pick up the pizzas on my way. By the way I am very grateful for your fortune because this is a shit ton of food."

"Wait. And he texted you because..?"

"He's pack Stiles." Derek answered, grabbing all of the sides and desserts.

"Wait, wait. What the fuck. I know I've been gone for a while but I didn't think it was long enough for everyone to start accepting Theo into the pack."

"Stiles. Just get the fucking pizza." Derek replied.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Technically I didn't lie when I said the next chapter wouldn't be in 8 months. It's only been 4 months. Not going to deny, this chapter was so hard to write. Any feedback is appreciated. Enjoy lads.
> 
> UPDATE ~~ 14th Feb ~~  
> I hated the ending to this chapter so I changed it. It’s all the same apart from the last chunk.

Stiles struggled to shut the door with the stack of remaining pizzas in his arms. After a couple attempts of shutting the door with different body parts he decided on just body slamming it shut. As he walked into the living room he laughed at the sight of various sized boxes scattered throughout most of the floor. He settled the stack in the middle of everyone, grabbing a box for himself and settled on the sofa next to Erica.

"So...Theo? This is, how do I put it...fucking strange." Stiles said.

"He's pack Stiles." Scott replied.

"So I was told. But why?"

"When you left for Hollywood Theo changed. He began helping us when he said he wouldn't. Then he started getting hurt for us. It took a while but eventually he proved himself and showed that he wasn't the person you still think he is." Liam replied, smiling at Theo as he said it. Theo returned the smile and they both quickly broke their intimate gaze.

Stiles looked back and forth at them, frowning as he did. "Hm. If you say so."

"You're not going to let it go this easily, are you?" Theo asked.

"Of course not. You're just going to have to prove yourself before I can trust you. It's not that I don't completely lack trust in you, but I wasn't here to see this change of heart so I can only make judgements on what I see."

"Okay, that's not completely unfair." Scott replied.

They sat there amongst each other, making small talk as they made their way through the mountain of food. Stiles' vision went black for a moment, a backwards number five was all he could think about. Stiles knew that he had seen it before, but couldn't quite place where. He was brought back into the room, when Erica nudged his arm hard.

"Ow! What was that for?" Stiles snapped.

"You zoned out. I called your name like three times, you didn't acknowledge me." Erica replied.

"Sorry, I was just thinking." He could see Scott and Derek turn towards his direction, concern on their faces. "A backwards number five came into my head. I know it, but I can't think where from."

"A backwards number five?" Derek asked.

"Yeah."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes, of course I'm sure. I'm the one that imagined it."

"Uh-Stiles. Were you totally sure it was a backwards five?"

"Yes! Why? Is it bad? It's bad isn't it? Of course it's bad."

"Stiles."

"Oh for god sake Derek, you can't tell me it's bad news then not tell me! Just tell me what it means."

The others stopped their conversations and looked towards Stiles, confusion clouding their faces.

"Stiles. The backwards number five technically isn't a number, it's a mark."

"A mark for what?"

"It-it was the mark that let the Oni know that a person wasn't possessed by the Nogitsune."

"Oh fuck off. Fuck off. Fuck."

"Wait, what's a Nogitsune?" Theo asked.

"The Nogitsune was an evil spirit that possessed me. Manipulating my body into thinking that I had frontotemporal dementia, the dementia that killed my mum and the only dementia that teenagers can get. Essentially I was being tortured in my own body. Somehow we managed to split, but it still held my appearance. The longer it held my appearance the sicker I was getting. It's also the thing that nearly killed Allison." Stiles replied, looking down at his hands.

"Stiles, you're fine." Lydia assured.

"But what if I'm not? What if the Nogitsune is possessing me again? I don't know if my body will be able to handle that torture again."

"It can't be back. It's in the container made out of mountain ash. I buried it deep, like really deep in the ground in some farming village in France." Isaac replied.

"Even if it escaped. Or someone accidentally let it out. The chances of it coming back to Beacon Hills is so small." Erica questioned.

"But is it? I mean this fucking town attracts the supernatural. It literally has beacon in the name. Plus it could have a connection to the Nemeton that drew it back here. The way it treated me before, it would just love to do it again."

Stiles looked around the room, everyone was staring at him with sympathetic faces. He could feel a panic attack quickly rising to the surface but tried to pry it down before any of the wolves in the room registered it. His phone began vibrating in his pocket and Stiles sighed with relief. Stiles looked at his phone to see Amelia's name bold and bright on the screen.

"Sorry it's work, I have to take this."

He got up and quickly ran to the front door, sitting on the porch swing he had been on not long ago. "Hey Amelia, what's up?"

"Do you know what I'm looking at Stiles?" Amelia asked, a negative tone in her voice.

"Well obviously not."

"I'm looking at a picture of you and some guy getting all cuddly on a porch swing. Really Stiles, a porch swing?"

"Wait what? For gods sake I've been here a day and already the paparazzi are after me."

"Care to explain?"

"It's not like that. I'm home and everyone is having a little get together, that's all."

"Then why does it look like he's breaking your heart?"

"Oh come on. I'm sure it doesn't look like that! Send me over a photo." Within a second Stiles' phone buzzed. He opened the picture of him and Derek. "Wh-okay maybe I do look like that but that's not what was happening."

"Then what was happening?"

"I ordered pizza and Derek and I were waiting for it. He apologised to me about something that happened years ago. That's all."

"So that's the infamous Derek Hale huh? I don't know what I expected him to look like, but definitely not that hot."

"I'll happily introduce you two sometime."

"Hm, I bet you would. Stiles the pictures will surface soon and everyone’s going to be asking questions. I just wanted you to know that it's out there."

"If anyone asks you can just make something up, you're a great liar. Not that you'll have to make up an obscene lie anyway, there's nothing going on."

"If that's what you say. But what happened to laying low anyway?"

"Technically I am! I'm at my friends house. I can't help it if any paparazzi follow me."

"Is your hometown making you feel any better?"

"Ask me in about a month or two."

"Okay, well I've got to go. Things to do. Oh! I nearly forgot to mention. The trailer for Midnight Oak is coming out in about a week so keep your eyes open."

"Thanks Amelia, will do. Speak to you later."

Stiles sat on the porch swing, taking everything in. The thought of being possessed by the Nogitsune was a scary one, but that chances were too slim. He just needed to figure out why the Oni mark had popped into his head. Stiles broke his train of thought when he heard footsteps coming towards the house. His eyes widened at the sight of Kate in front of him.

"Are you really that stupid to come here. After the entrance you made earlier."

"Actually, I came here for you." Kate snarled, grabbing Stiles' head and smashing it on the porch bannister.

 

~~~~~

 

Stiles slowly regained consciousness, his head and left eye throbbing as the dim light in the room flooded his vision. His arms were chained separately, his weak body hanging, relying on the chains holding him up. Stiles laughed to himself at the realisation of his undisturbed sleep. The thought of thanking Kate crossed his mind, until he realised that he couldn't open his left eye.

"You're looking a little rough Stiles. Having trouble opening that eye?" Kate laughed, coming from somewhere in the corner.

"How many times did you hit my face on the banister, surely it wasn't just one." Stiles spat in return.

"I may have hit that precious face of yours a couple of times."

"What do you want with me?"

Kate came from the corner of the room, slowly coming into vision. "Can't have you or your pack thinking it's acceptable to talk to me like that."

"Oh I'm sorry. Did I hurt your feelings? Too bad."

"No, that's not all I wanted you for. It was the best timing you coming back into town. I needed a way to see Allison. And you're my way in."

Stiles laughed. "You're kidding right? You know they're coming for me. And they're not dumb enough to leave Allison on her own."

"That's exactly what I'm hoping for Stiles. You didn't think I'd come back without a good plan, did you? Time for talking is over, but I won't leave you in here without any friends. I'm not a monster."

Kate smirked and left for a different corner of the room. Without any warning the room flooded with light and Stiles groaned in pain and shut his eye. After a moment of scuffle and groans the door eventually slammed shut.

"Stiles?" A voice asked.

He knew the voice but from long ago, not quite placing it. Stiles slowly adjusted his eye to the light, turning towards the direction the voice came from.

"Ethan?" Stiles asked. He smiled at the familiar face, but quickly frowned at the sight of Jackson laying unconscious on the floor. "Oh and Jackson. I forget you two are an item."

"I would help but there's wolfsbane in the ventilation system."

"It's alright, I'm okay hanging for a while. What about Jackson? Can't handle it?"

"No, he was injected with yellow wolfsbane. Normal wolfsbane doesn't have the same effect on him because he's part kanima. Don't know when he'll wake up but he'll be a lot stronger than me so he should be able to get you down."

"Yeah it's Jackson so I'm not counting on it."

"Who's this woman anyway? And why does she want you?"

"That's Kate Argent, Allison's aunt. Allison's pregnant but we don't know if Kate knows. I got into town the same day she was going to try something, good luck for her and bad for me I guess. I'm more concerned on why she has you. If she injected Jackson with yellow wolfsbane she knows what he is, what you are. She said she has a plan and I can't figure out what it is."

Stiles held his breath at the excruciating pain that went through his arm. He managed to lift his head for long enough to see a needle sticking out of his arm, liquid slowly entering his body. Stiles sighed. "Fuck. I don't even want to know what that is."

Ethan struggled as he tried to get up from the floor, failing. "I'm sorry Stiles. The wolfsbane is too strong."

"It's fine Ethan."

Stiles groaned as the pain spread through the whole of his body. He pulled on the chains, trying to free himself, to get the needle out but he was too weak. The pain was becoming unbearable, each limb felt like they were on fire. He could hear Ethan trying to talk to him, but it was muffled and too quiet to hear. He was paralysed with pain. His breathing began to low as the pain became too much to bare. He could feel the seconds slowly ticking away, not sure on how much longer of consciousness he could take.

Stiles felt one of the chains begin to loosen. He thought he was daydreaming until he fell to the floor, his body not even attempting to pick itself up. He didn't realise he had shut his eye until he began to open it, seeing Ethan and Jackson leaning over him.

"Jesus Stilinski, you look like shit." Jackson said.

"Come on Jackson, be more sympathetic." Ethan snapped.

Stiles groaned as he slowly sat himself up, with the help of Ethan. "How long was I out?"

"About three hours. It was weird because you weren't unconscious but you wasn't fully registering everything around you. Guess it was whatever Kate gave you." Ethan replied.

"Kate? As in Kate Argent? Allison's aunt Kate?" Jackson asked.

"Yep. Don't know what she wants with me or you two. We don't want her near Allison because she's pregnant. Please don't let me elaborate, I'm still in agony."

Jackson got up to inspect the liquid that had previously been injected into Stiles, whilst Ethan sat next to Stiles, comforting him. Jackson scooped some up on his finger and smelt it, trying to find a similar scent.

"It's kanima venom but it's been altered. The scent, it's off. My guess if Kate has somehow changed it so instead of it causing paralysis it caused pain. Obviously it had to be constantly injected into the body to get the full effect. I'm pretty sure it would be a bearable pain for werewolves but for humans, well."

"Fucking great." Stiles sighed.

Stiles moved towards the wall and leant up against it, needing the wall to support him. Ethan and Jackson spoke amongst themselves and Stiles wasn't interested in listening. He wanted to go home, attempt to get some sleep and for the day to be over.

There was a commotion at the door, filling the room in silence. They all waited and listened as the commotion got closer to the door. The door fell forward, completely off of its hinges and Lydia was standing, smiling.

"Stiles, oh thank god." Lydia shouted, running towards him, embracing him tightly.

Stiles flinched in pain and Lydia let go. "Jeez Lydia. Sorry, its just Kate did some shit. So I'm kind of fragile right now."

"Am I not getting a hello this time or is Stilinski going to pull us apart again?" Jackson asked, smirking.

"No, we're not together anymore. We talked about it and we agreed it was a bit weird. We become best friends more than anything else." Lydia explained.

Stiles wasn't sad about it then and didn't get upset when Lydia mentioned it. Although Junior Stiles would have adored dating Lydia Martin, with everything they went through together it drew the closer together, but as friends.

Scott, Isaac and Derek ran into the room quickly after. Scott and Derek ran over to Stiles whilst Isaac focused on Ethan and Jackson.

"Dude, you okay?" Scott asked.

"I should be fine. Kate injected me with some stuff. Jackson thinks its kanima venom altered to cause pain, not paralysis." Stiles explained.

"How much pain?" Derek asked, his brows furrowed in question.

"Stiles went from being fine to screaming in pain within seconds. He was semi-conscious for about three hours." Ethan explained.

"Kate said it was good timing me coming back to town. She said she wanted to see Allison and I was her way in." Stiles said, before any of them could give him sympathy.

Stiles began blinking heavily, his head becoming dizzy all of a sudden. The room began to spin and all of the voices slowly quietened. The venom that Kate injected was causing havoc with Stiles’ body and sleep seemed to be imminent.

 

~~~~~

 

The light irritated Stiles’ good eye as he slowly opened it. He sensed that he was no longer wherever Kate held him. His surroundings seemed more familiar, wherever he was set was warm and comfortable.

“You didn’t stir. Not even once.” Said a disgustingly familiar voice.

Stiles slowly sat up, looking Derek in the eye. “Apparently the shit that happens in this town keeps the night terrors away. I would complain because pain, life changing injuries and potential death but I haven’t been this refreshed in months."

“We called Deaton. He came and checked you out. Whatever Kate gave you knocked you out and it worried him. He took a blood sample and he’s checking it out now. How are you feeling?”

Stiles watched as Derek sat at the end of the bed. A part of him still hated Derek for how he had treated him yet he couldn’t help but love him a little bit more each time he went out of his way to care.

“I still feel a bit light headed and there’s this constant kind of ache going through the whole of my body. My eye’s still throbbing a little. But apart from that I’m okay.”

“I can take away the pain. All you have to do is ask Stiles.”

“No I’m fine. The pain reminds me I’m normal sometimes. Whenever I want to do stunts I’m never allowed, it’s like I’m too fragile. Everyone wants to preserve my body and my face. I feel like I’m constantly wrapped in bubble wrap.”

“Only you would feel satisfaction from pain.”

“Hey! It’s not a kink thing, okay. Anymore than this and I’ll ask for the bubble wrap back. How long was I out anyway?”

Derek got up from the bed and walked towards the open window. He sat on the window ledge, the breeze blowing his shirt. He let out a deep sigh and looked at Stiles with concern.”Two days.”

Stiles stared at Derek with confusion. “Did you say two days?”

“I told you Deaton was worried.”

Stiles kicked off the bed sheets and steadied himself on the bed as he began to stand. Before he could stand fully, Derek was by his side, helping him straighten up. Stiles groaned as he stretched his body, his muscles screaming from their sudden use after two days of complete rest.

Stiles looked down to see different clothes than the ones he last wore. His jeans, jumper and jacket had been changed into just a shirt and sweatpants. He panics slightly at the thought of who changed his clothes but quickly pushes the thought aside before Derek could pick up on it.

“We were going to take you home but Kate’s sudden interest in you made it difficult. We talked to your dad and he was okay with you staying here for a while. It would be easier to protect you and Allison if you were both in the same place.” Derek said, as they walked down the stairs, towards the living room.

Stiles nodded as they walked into the living room. To Stiles’ surprise, only a few members of the pack were there. Scott and Allison were in the kitchen cooking, whilst Lydia and Malia were sitting on one couch and Isaac sprawled out on the other.

“Where’s the others?” Stiles asked.

“Erica and Boyd are out for a fancy dinner. I think Boyd’s going to propose tonight. The rest are working. I think. I don’t know, I’ve been kinda busy lately so I’m losing track. Their phones GPS signal is on though so if they run into any trouble with Kate we’ll find them.”

Scott replied, handing Stiles a cold beer. Stiles took the beer and drunk it slowly, savouring the coldness of it as the liquid slowly went down his throat. He hadn’t realised he’d been gasping for a cold drink until then.

He jumped onto the armchair and slung his legs over one of the arm rests. Malia and Isaac were watching Avengers, whilst Lydia was busy with the mountain of paperwork in her lap.

“Hey Lydia. I never asked. What are you doing back? When I spoke to my dad he said you were still at Brown.” Stiles asked.

“This semester’s over until after the summer break. I was coming home anyway, but I heard you were in town and decided to come back earlier than I had planned.” Lydia said as she continued writing notes.

“Guess it wasn’t the welcome home you expected, huh?”

“No, but then again it never is with this town. I’m just glad you’re okay Stiles.” Lydia paused to look up at Stiles. “Really Stiles, you scared us all. Everyone’s probably thinking it but I’m just going to say it. I think you should consider going back to LA. I don’t want you getting hurt, not with everything you’re going through.”

“Lydia...”Allison began.

“But it’s true! Look Stiles. You have been through enough, no one blames you if you want to go back home.”

“Lydia this is my home. Beacon Hills will always be the place where my heart is. Okay yeah, I’ll admit it. I didn’t want to come back. Not after everything that happened with the Ghost Riders and especially the Nogitsune. I didn’t want to face any of it. But I got that push to come home and I’m glad I did. So I got hurt on my first day back. It’s annoying but come on, it’s Beacon Hills. We’ll just figure all of this out together, like we usually do and everything will fall into place. On the bright side I haven’t had any night terrors for two days so that’s a win.” Stiles smiled as Lydia looked at him sympathetically. “I’m not going anywhere Lydia.”

Lydia rolled her eyes and continued writing on the paperwork in her lap. Derek walked over to the couch Isaac was sat on and pushed his legs down to make room for himself. Isaac completely ignored the encounter, as if it was a normal occurrence.

Stiles pulled his phone out of his pocket. He paused for a moment at the thought of how it had gotten there. Whoever changed his clothes must have put his phone in his sweatpants, knowing that Stiles would soon need it.

He sighed at the amount of notifications on his screen. Most of them were emails with what were most likely scripts attached to them, but he focused more on his messages.

_Amelia - 10mins ago_  
_Got the pictures all cleared up. Trailer for Midnight Oak is dropping sometime tomorrow. Will text you if I get anymore updates. Glad to see that you’re actually staying out of the limelight this time._

Stiles sighed at the thought of the film becoming a priority in his life. It took every ounce of sanity he had left to finish the film without having a mental breakdown. The thought of having to go on a press tour, to talk about it over and over again to different people, in different countries made anxiety settle at the bottom of his stomach.

Stiles liked press tours. Loved them in fact. He loved to reach out to his fans in person, to show them how grateful he was. But he knew this time would be different. The experience that he loved would be tainted by discussing the similarities of his past.

Sometimes Stiles wished he never knew about the supernatural world. He would think about how easier his life would have been if he had never gone into the woods that day. Scott would have never become a werewolf. They may have never met Derek or Peter. Derek may have never got his alpha powers. Scott wouldn’t have had problems with Alison, or her family. Lydia would never have been bitten and dragged into the supernatural world. Jackson would have never wanted the bite to be like Scott and never become the kanima. Isaac, Boyd and Erica may have never been bitten either. He would have never met Malia. He probably would never have been possessed by the Nogitsune.

He felt guilty at the thought of never wanting anything to do with the supernatural world. He felt selfish. Derek gave him a concerned look, obviously being able to sense his sudden change in emotions. Stiles wanted to discuss everything about the upcoming press tour and how he felt, but today wasn’t the day. He didn’t really know when the right time would be.


End file.
